WRITTEN BY LONDON SWAMINATHAN

Post No.7590

Date uploaded in London – 18 February 2020

Contact – swami_48@yahoo.com

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Hindu epics and Puranas narrate many stories about women who changed the course of Nature to save their near and dear or their honour. Hindus believe chaste women can do miracles through the power of their chastity. Tiruvalluvar, the greatest of the Tamil poets, is the strongest advocate of such miraculous powers.

He says,

“A wife who may not worship god but wakes up with worshipful devotion to her husband has the (miraculous ) power to make rain fall at her bidding” – Kural couplet 55 tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

Another translation of the same couplet

“Even the clouds will obey and pour out rain at the bidding of a wife

Who prefers to worship her husband rather than any other god”.

That is, a virtuous woman who knows no other god but her husband may command the very clouds to pour forth rain and they will do so.

Probably this is an echo of Manu Smrti, where Manu says,

A virtuous wife should constantly serve her husband as a god, even if he behaves badly.

Apart from their husbands women cannot perform fire sacrifices or undertake a vow or fast; it is because a wife obeys her husband that she is exalted in heaven- Manu 5-154/155 tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

This means they get direct, free flight ticket to Heaven without doing any ritual!  If they serve their husbands , that is more than enough!

Chaste women did such miracles only when they were very desperate. Hindus believed that truth and honesty are more powerful than Gods or Truth and Honesty are Gods.

Women don’t use the power for petty things. Hanuman had a novel plan for rescue Sita. Even when Hanuman asked Sita to sit on his shoulder so that she can easily escape from the prison house of Ravana, the demon,

Sita replied  “What did you say? I can burn the three worlds with my one word through my power of chastity. But that will diminish the name and fame of my beloved husband Rama”

–Kamba Ramayana in Tamil. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

So each one is expected to do his or her lawful duty. If one failed to so, then women used their power.

Kannaki, the heroine of the greatest Tamil epic Silappadikaram, burnt Madurai City, when her husband was unjustly executed. She just commanded Agni , the God of Fire, to burn all the bad people in the city and Madurai was burnt to ashes.

Here are FIVE GREAT MIRACLE WOMEN who are worshipped by Hindu women even today—

1.Damayanti

2.Nalayini

3.Anusuya

4.Savitri

5.Arundhati

What did they do?

1.Damayanti

Damayanti fell in love with a king named Nala. But the heavenly deities Indra, Agni, Varuna and Yama also wanted to marry her. Hindu women of the warrior caste (Kshatriyas) had the greatest freedom in the ancient world and they had chosen their own husbands. It was called Swayamvara. All the kings would get invitation letters. When Nala also attended it, the four Vedic Gods dressed themselves just like Nala and attended the Swayamvara ceremony. When the beauty Damyanti entered the decorated hall she was perplexed by seeing Five Nalas there. Immediately she used her power and prayed God to identify the Real Nala. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

Vedic Gods are from alien worlds. They are extra -terrestrials. Hindu scriptures beautifully describe the qualities of ETs,

Their feet wont touch the ground;

They would not perspire;

Their eyes wont wink;

Their garlands wont wither;

They can have beautiful women Apsaras with them, but they cant have sex. If they want sex they have to do Inter Galactic Travel and come to earth for sex. Puranas say Parvati cursed them that they can never have sex in the Swarga/Heaven.

Damyanti knew all these things. So after her prayer she looked at the feet of Five Nala Figures in the hall. Feet of four deities or ETs were above the ground. She identified her dream lover Nala and garlanded him.

Xxx

2.Nalayini

The story of Nalayini is very long with interesting turns and twists. But for our part we will take only one incident. Since Nalayini put one condition for her marriage, she had to marry an old seer whose legs got paralysed. She told the world that she would marry a man of wisdom and thus landed herself in the hands of an old seer Maukhalya. He asked her to carry him in a basket wherever he wanted to go and Nalayini readily obeyed him. While transporting him in the strange vehicle of basket, she accidentally hit another seer Mandavya who was fighting for his life in a spiked pole. He was falsely accused of stealing royal jewels and was impaled. He was seething with anger because he did not steal the jewels and he cursed Nalayini that she would lose her husband before sun rise the next day. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

Nalayini  also became angry for punishing her husband for her mistake. And she vowed that the sun would not rise if she is chaste and really devoted to her husband. The sun did not rise next day and it was still dark at 10 am. The whole world suffered and begged to Nalayini to bless them all with sun light. People even sought the good offices of Tri Murtis- Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.

Though out Hindu scriptures we can see Truth wins; even god can’t change the Rtam=Rhythm=Truth. So gods begged to her as well. And she said ‘Let the Sun rise’. And it rose and shone. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

Such is the power of chastity!

3.Anasuya

Vedic sage Atri had a chaste wife called Anasuya. Her name meant ‘Never Ever Jealous’. Because of this rare virtue in a woman (women always feel jealous of someone; men too, but not to the extent of a WOMAN) and her devotion to her husband, she earned her miraculous powers. When the whole world praised her there were some non- believers . So the all powerful Triumvirate – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva came in the guise of Brahmins and had a good lunch at her house, when her husband was out. As a last request they told her they want to have breast milk, that too straight from her, not in a bottle or a cup.  She did not even wait for a moment. She said ‘Yes my Darlings. So be it – Thadaastu’- she changed them into six month old babies and fed the Three Great Gods. Such is the power of Chastity. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

4.Savitri

Savitri was the woman who married Sathyavan (meaning is Mr Truth) though astrologers told her family that he would die within a year of the marriage. She had so much confidence in her Chastity power she boldly married him. And came the predicted day. Yama, God of Death, came to take away his life. She argued with him and followed him, nagging him to return the life of Sathyavan. Yama couldn’t tolerate her nagging. He promised her several boons and one of which the traditional greeting that all Hindu women get. When a woman salutes any sage they will say ‘Deerga Sumangali Bhava. This means ‘let you live with your husband for ever’.  Yama also greeted her with these words. She put a tricky question. How can I be a Sumangali (wife with a husband)  when Yama has taken her husband’s life. Yama yielded and gave her husband’s life back. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

5.Arundhati

Arundhati was a low caste woman by name Akshamala. She became the wife of Vasistha, a great sage of Vedic lore, and became a symbol of chastity. She literally became a star and became part of Ursa Major constellation also known as Sapta Rishi mandala in the northern sky. From Kanyakumari to Kashmir, every married woman must see her before entering the First Night room and take a vow that she would be another Arundhati.

Once all the Seven Great Rishis (Seven Seers in the Great Bear/ Ursa Major Constellation) did a Fire Sacrifice -Yajna in Sanskrit. Agni, the messenger of Gods, who carry all the offerings to heaven wanted to test whether Arundhati is a chaste woman. In fact, Agni wanted to show the world that she is chaster than any woman in the world. So he invited all the women to come to bed with him. Wives of six seers were ready and Swaahaa helped them to take her guise and they entertained Agni. Swaha is the wife of Agni. Swaha could not take the shape of Arundhati however hard she tried. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

Though it is a symbolic story that shows Arundhati became a star because she was the most chaste woman in the universe. Sangam Tamil literature praises her in several places. So she was recognised from Kanyakumari to Kashmir.

Even today she is one of the important part of rituals in Hindu marriages.

There are many more stories of chaste Hindu women. This must be part of School syllabus. There are many stories where men remained chaste and Rama stands at the top. All Hindu kings could marry many women, but Rama was the only Hindu king who refused to marry another woman. Since Hindu scriptures say that a man cannot perform religious rituals without wife, Rama made a golden statue of Sita and did religious rituals keeping it by his side. This rule applies when one’s wife is alive but not available for rituals. tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com

It wouldn’t be out of context to mention here that  two great people insisted  chastity for men also. Subrahmanya Bharatiyar, the greatest of the modern Tamil poets, who lived 100 years ago and Varahamihira who lived 1500 years ago insisted chastity for men like women.

Long Live Chaste Women!